Nine in 10 skin cancer deaths could be prevented if employers and employees took precautions to avoid sun damage – especially those working outdoors.
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) said at least 1,500 new diagnoses of non-melanoma skin cancer and 240 new cases of malignant melanoma linked to solar ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure at work every year could be avoided if businesses developed “sun safety strategies”.
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Such strategies should involve regular updates on the UV index from weather forecasts; minimising workers’ sun exposure in the middle of the day by swapping jobs among team members; and asking employees to wear long-sleeved shirts and trousers.
Outdoor workers – especially those in construction, farming, recreation, sports and public services – are particularly at risk because of their roles. IOSH claimed outdoor workers receive 5-10 times the yearly UVR exposure of indoor workers and are regularly exposed to UVR for more than three-quarters of their working day.
It is estimated that the risk of developing skin cancer increased significantly with five or more years of outdoor work.
“Both malignant melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancer are on the rise in Britain and Europe and sun exposure is the main cause. In Britain alone, skin cancer kills 60 workers a year,” said Mary Ogungbeje, research manager at IOSH.
To mark Sun Awareness Week this week, IOSH pointed organisations that employ outdoor staff to research it conducted with Heriot-Watt University. The study, published earlier this year, found workers’ desire to get a sun tan remained high in the summer, with many workers deliberately exposing themselves to high levels of UV radiation to get the desired skin tone.
Heriot-Watt University’s Professor John Cherrie said Britons’ desire for a sun tan is “stopping us from taking proper care to protect our skin from the damaging effects of the UV radiation in sunlight.”
